


Reminds Me of You

by Zaphirite



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: But not exactly, Ficlet, Gen, Marichat, cat tendancies, cosmetics that smell like your partner/crush, like the thing where you borrow a sweater and it smells like them, lush products, one-sided reveal, or at least he thinks it is
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-28
Updated: 2016-09-12
Packaged: 2018-06-05 00:39:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6682480
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zaphirite/pseuds/Zaphirite
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Marinette was now sitting on the edge of her tub about to shower for the night when she pulled the shampoo bar out of its bag and smelled it, blushing furiously.</p><p>Well, her conscious brain didn’t know why she was so drawn to it. That part caught up with her subconscious a little later when she realized why it smelled so familiar.</p><p>“I am going to skin that stupid smile off of that stupid cat.” She muttered, not moving the cinnamon and clove scented product from under her nose.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I just wanted to buy some stuff from Lush today when I see a ladybug shaped bubble bar in the window. Then I see a new shampoo bar named What's New Pussycat? and I walked in needing a refill and left with the need to write this ficlet.
> 
> A fun flip-side of ladrienintensifies bath prompt fill that I made a suggestion for a few weeks ago: http://ladrienintensifies.tumblr.com/post/142602520916/ladrien-showerbath
> 
> Find me at crispypata on tumblr!

She swears to herself she didn’t know it then when she bought it earlier that day.

Alya insisted that she splurged on some self-care instead of craft supplies for once – which she did sometimes! Bath bombs were a fizzy _godsend_ after the harder akuma fights. But Alya didn’t know about the giant basket under her sink nor did she want to have to explain it, and so she was tugged along.

Marinette was now sitting on the edge of her tub about to shower for the night when she pulled the shampoo bar out of its bag and sniffed it again, blushing furiously.

Well, her conscious brain didn’t know why she was so drawn to it. That part caught up with her subconscious a little later when she realized why it smelled so familiar. 

“I am going to skin that stupid smile off of that stupid cat.” She muttered, not moving the cinnamon and clove scented product from under her nose.

As Ladybug, she never really registered this between fighting and finding a place to hide before her transformation ran out.

As Marinette, who has had a stray persistent about getting pats and attention from her for the last few weeks, the proximity made it hard to be anything but familiar. 

And now she was mad. 

Mad at the hero for worming his way into her lap and her heart, mad at herself for not realizing where the scent came from at the store, and mad at the shampoo bar in her hand because it was named ‘What’s New Pussycat?’ - _Seriously Chat, what the actual heck_?

“Marinette, if it bothers you that much you don’t have to use it.” Tikki’s voice drifted from the sink she was using as a bath herself. Marinette looked up at her kwami, thankful for her concerned gaze.

It’s true. She had every right to _not_ use it.

She could just tell Alya it made her hair too oily or something if she ever asks. No one else would ever know.

Marinette looked up at the sink again, eyeing the sliver of mirror she could see herself in from her angle. Red ran across her whole face and her mouth was stretched so thin from not letting herself emote because she wasn’t sure if it would end in a frown or a smile.

The Ladybug in her head was proud of all of this control she maintained.

Marinette turned on the shower and picked out the other products she was going to use. Once standing under the running water, she eyed the rose-colored bar for a moment as the steam brought its scent up to her nose.

She let out an undignified squeak before she squeezed her eyes shut in defeat and grabbed the shampoo bar. 

Normally, she slept with her hair tied up and out of her face. Just this once though, she left it lose and allowed herself to smile as she fell asleep with wavy locks brushing against her face.

* * *

 

It was hot the next evening, the trap door to the roof was propped open to let the air circulate.

Chat Noir took it as an invitation to come inside, watching as Marinette made no movement upon his entrance. Her eyes stayed fixed on the homework assignment she was working on, eyes down and jaw set. He tiptoed down the loft stairs to stand behind her.

“Marinette…” his voice teased, claws gently pricking at her arms as he slouched to rest his chin on her shoulder. He turned his head slightly to look down at her paper when his nose met a lock of her hair.

They both froze. 

Chat was so close to her ear she could hear his single, hesitant _sniff_. He pulled back just enough to meet her eyes as she reluctantly turned to gauge his reaction.

They yelled.

The back of Marinette’s chair already hit her desk and Chat fell backwards, scooting away until his back hit her chaise. Somehow, the skin visible from under his mask was blushing just as bright as she knew her face was wearing.

“I AM SO SORRY I DIDN’T KNOW I COULD DO THAT!” The hero curled in on himself, covering his face with his hands.

Her eyes widened. “Wha- do _what_ , Chat? What the hell did you do that's making you freak out?”

He didn’t remove his hands, only spreading his fingers enough to peer back up at her between them.

“Cats – I swear I didn’t know I could do this, I thought it was just the need for pats and the purring,” his bright eyes met hers only for a moment before darting again to look at anything and anywhere but her. “They, um…mark their t-territory with their scent glands by rubbing against things…and people. And you smell just like me and I am so sorry, _ohmygod_ -“

_Oh._

He hid his face and curled in tighter as she realized his train of thought. He was panicking because he thought it was his fault. Well, technically it was, but she had to calm her poor kitten down before he tries to leap out the window.

“No! No, oh no, I just –“ Marinette took a breath and bit her lip, now looking down into her lap. “I got this new shampoo bar and it r-reminded me of you and uh so yeah I smell likeyoukindofandit’sreally,reallynice-”

Chat lifted his head with bewildered wide eyes. Marinette blushed even harder, yanked her sweater collar over her whole face, and screeched in embarrassment.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette booped his nose with her pencil, Chat sticking his tongue out in response. “What, your pretty kitty nose too sensitive?”
> 
> “The nose knows, princess! I can discern everything because of magic. I can name a lot of people’s scents, even yours and Ladybug’s.” He tried to look proud and puff out his chest, but it didn't work well when he was still lying down on it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> that balcony preview finally kicked my butt into gear to write part two to this after how long? sorry for the long wait, but here's a silly continuation \o/

For a while now, personal space wasn’t much of a problem between them anymore. Somewhere along the way, cuddling and physical contact became a part of their routine during Chat Noir’s visits. 

Sometimes it was in an attentive, close sense - there were some times that Chat came in visibly distressed about something that he couldn't bring himself to talk about, and so sometimes Marinette would let him lie in her lap as she ran fingers through his hair while they reviewed her history reading for class the next day. 

Most other times like tonight, she was lying on her stomach on the bed and doodling while Chat laid perpendicular across her back, flipping through her collection of fashion magazines. He was a surprisingly light weight on her back that she could probably lift him if she tried to get up, even without her powers. 

She looked up from a logo design for a present for Nino when Chat started laughing. She made an inquiring noise and Chat turned to look at her while holding the magazine open in between them. 

“This article on candles and perfumes is ridiculous. I've used a couple of these. That candle that’s supposed to smell like boyfriend flannel really smells like menthol ointment.”

Marinette booped his nose with her pencil, Chat sticking his tongue out in response. “What, your pretty kitty nose too sensitive?”

“The nose knows, princess! I can discern everything because of magic. I can name a lot of people’s scents, even yours and Ladybug’s.” He tried to look proud and puff out his chest, but it didn't work well when he was still lying down on it. 

“...do you now?” 

Marinette tried to relax the strain in her forced grin. The lead of her pencil snapped dully against her sketchbook. 

If Chat noticed her nerves, he didn't show it and continued on. 

“Well, to be exact, the one time I got close enough for Ladybug it was mostly muddled up with the smell of your bakery and her magic. So her scent is her own magic, which is different than mine. It's kind of hard to describe…” He leaned his face on his hand. “Kind of like how you know what cold smells like? Except instead of metal, it smells like something natural and earthy.”

He rolled off of her back to lie beside her. 

“But you’ve figured out my scent too, remember? You’ve got a good nose for matching products that I use.”

He grinned, and she turned her face away and shoved his shoulder. As if she wanted to remember that embarrassing incident a couple weeks ago with the shampoo bar (which she never used again and was still sitting in a container under her sink). 

“Aw, come on Marinette.” She could feel him pawing at her arm and he began to rub his mop of hair against her cheek just like a cat. The cat ears were velvety and his hair was so soft-

Wait. 

Marinette snapped her head back around, getting a face full of blond hair before jerking back. 

“ _ You didn't _ .” 

The grin on his face widened, but unlike Marinette’s freak out back then, he was only more amused at her realization. 

“Your scent is citrus under all the bakery smells. It's really nice and relaxing and easy on my kitty nose.”

He figured out her scent. 

He figured out her scent and had the gall to use the same bath bomb she used after really stressful days  _ and literally rubbed it in her face _ . 

Her face flushed immediately as she tried to think of a comeback and all he did was take the sight of her in, tail tip wavering in the air. The exact picture of a cat that had caught the canary.

The universe finally took mercy upon Marinette and saved her from stuttering through a weak retort with a loud rumble in the distance, followed by screams and a sharp stroke of a violin.

They both bolted up from the bed to look out the open window, seeing dust settling only a few streets over but no akuma in sight.

“That’s really close…” Chat turned to Marinette and closed the window, his face now serious. His eyes were stronger in costume, he probably saw something that she couldn’t.  “Stay inside and hold tight, I need to take care of things till Ladybug gets there, okay?”

“Yeah, sure…” The muttered comment hung in the air, Chat Noir already hauling himself through the trap door and vaulting away into the distance. 

Really, what was she going to do with this cat of hers? 

Marinette sighed in defeat, hoping that this would be the last time the topic of cosmetic products and scents was ever brought up for the sake of her sanity and her heart. 

Tikki poked out from her usual hiding place on Marinette’s desk. “Well, looks like Ladybug is needed too!”

“Yup, let's go. Tikki, spots on!”

 

* * *

 

 

Stopping the akuma ended up taking half the night, leaving Marinette with 3 hours of sleep.

Marinette sleepily scrolled through her tablet to double check that her homework had been saved and submitted. When Adrien walked into the classroom and waved to her, her greeting was cut off by a huge yawn. Somehow, she was tired enough that her nerves couldn't jolt her awake. 

Alya laughed from next to her. “Give her a few minutes, she'll get back to you on that ‘good morning’.”

Class wasn't starting for a few more minutes, so Marinette slouched forward and laid her head on top of her arms. Faintly she heard Alya, Nino, and Adrien talking as she shut her eyes and breathed deeply to relax. 

Just five more minutes...

It couldn't have been even two minutes before something collided with her face, making Marinette jolt up and cover her nose. A glance down at her palm showed it wasn't bleeding but it did hurt a lot still. 

She looked down and saw Adrien holding the back of his head looking back at her. Up close she suddenly saw how tired he looked too. 

“Sorry! You okay? Sorry, guess I fell asleep too and leaned back.” He clutched at the back of his head with both hands, and his eyes were alarmingly wide. His mouth was stretched into a strange grin, not unlike the ones she used to pull around him.

“Yeah! Perfect! Peachy! Just fine!” She managed to squeak out, still rubbing her nose. 

Adrien watched her for a moment as his mouth quickly turned to a frown, before slowly turning back around as Madame Bustier entered the room. 

It took a second to process what just happened, but Marinette's hands dropped to cover her mouth to stifle herself. 

Right before his head collided with her face, Marinette got a whiff of something very sweet and citrusy. 

The way Adrien’s body twitched at her smothered gasp, head turning just a centimeter before forcing itself to look straight again only made her breathing stop altogether.


End file.
